Space (Laws of Physics #2)(14)

“That’ll be nice. Can we do any hiking? Is it safe?”

“If you want exercise, there’s an indoor pool and gym. But if you really want to go for a walk outside, you can go snowshoeing through the trails.”

“I’ve never gone snowshoeing.”

“It’s just very slow walking, with funny shoes. Though it’ll feel like you’ve covered a hundred miles by the time you finish. There’s a few Jacuzzis for warming up after, and a sauna near the gym as well as one on the top floor.”

Allyn’s eyebrows pulled together even as she smiled. “A few jacuzzis? Two saunas? Are you sure this isn’t a hotel?”

I rolled my eyes good-naturedly, but didn’t respond. I didn’t come here for the Jacuzzis and saunas and huge fireplaces and the music room and the sound studio and movie theater. My parents had houses all over the world, and they put money into a travel account for me (and one for each of my siblings) every year, mostly because they never wanted us to have an excuse if they requested our presence at some event. I rarely used the travel account and the mountain house was the only one I ever asked to visit.

“I’ll go snowshoeing with you if you really want to go.” I breathed on the glass, making a rough oval of condensation, and drew two smiley faces. “But mostly, I’d like to get some reading done.”

“Work stuff?” Allyn asked, making her own condensation canvas in the glass and drawing a flower. It looked like a thistle. She was a good artist.

“No, actually. A few novels I’ve been saving.”

“Really? Which ones?”

The funicular car began to slow, and I twisted my neck to peer out the window behind me. The house was now fully in view and all lit up. It looked warm and inviting, though I frowned at how many windows were illuminated. I usually stuck to the main floor, eschewing the larger rooms on the upper levels. Why would Lila turn on all the lights in every room? Strange.

“Uh, Lisa Kleypas. Her most recent two,” I answered distractedly.

“Oh, you haven’t read her latest book?” Allyn sounded anxious, which brought my attention back to her.

“No. Not yet. You know me, I’ve been saving them.”

“When you finish, I need to talk about it. I have feelings!” My friend did jazz hands, wiggling her fingers in the air.

Laughing, I stood as the car came to a stop in the top-side structure. “Okay. Sounds good. I’ll probably have feelings too. We can compare feelings notes.”

“Yes!” She jumped up and turned to grab her bag.

I unfastened the door and slid it to the side, and then I paused because I spotted a dark figure approaching the funicular structure, silhouetted by the lights of the house. The size of the outline made the person too big to be Lila, and the wrong chromosomal arrangement. Meaning, it was a man. And he was carrying what looked like a shovel over his shoulder.

“Who is . . . ?” I narrowed my eyes, stepping off the car, leaving my bag for the moment, and opened the structure door.

“Mona!”

I stood straighter at the sound of my brother’s greeting, ignoring the blast of cold wind. “Leo? What are you doing here?” I had to raise my voice over the gust. It hadn’t been nearly as blustery at the parking structures. I gripped my hat to my head, just in case it decided to fly off.

Fully materializing, he grinned down at me, his dark eyes moving over my face. “It’s good to see you! Do you need help with bags?” Leo made no move to hug me, not that I expected him to. After putting up with my stiff, detached hugs for several years, he’d stopped trying.

I shook my head, confused by his presence, and also by the uncomfortable prickling at the back of my neck. “It’s good to see you too. I didn’t know you were coming.”

“Did you get my voicemail?” he asked, but then glanced over my shoulder, obviously spotting Allyn. “Oh, hey. Alan, right?” He extended his hand automatically, but then chuckled at himself when he seemed to suddenly remember the work gloves covering his fingers.

“It’s pronounced Al-lean,” I corrected.

“Oh, sorry.” Leo seemed to be apologizing for both his inability to shake her hand and mispronouncing her name.

“That’s okay. You can call me Al if you like. And I can wave,” she offered cheerfully, coming to stand fully beside me. “I can also salute, but that might be weird.”

Her comment made Leo laugh, and he gave her another look, his eyes narrowing slightly as they moved down and then up. “I guess we’re saluting,” he said, smiling, saluting, his eyes still suspiciously squinty.

I say suspiciously because they were sparkly as well as squinty, and I knew that face: Leo had decided she was worth a second look. Allyn and Leo had met just once, separated by many people and meters, and very briefly, at my graduation from undergrad almost three years ago. It had been so short, I don’t think he even heard her name correctly and had called her “Alan.” Before I could correct his error then, he was pulled elsewhere, and Allyn had disappeared into the crowd.

Presently, they were still smiling at each other, almost like I wasn’t there, and the exchange was exponential levels of cute. Under normal circumstances, it would’ve initiated my innate scheming proclivities (arranging an accidental half-naked interaction, planning their wedding, sending out save-the-date cards, and prepping for her bachelorette party) because who wouldn’t want a best friend to marry an awesome sibling? But I was still perplexed by his presence and the sense of being suddenly and inexplicably on edge.